At the stage of the judicial investigation, the terms of arrest of the accused in the Hizb ut-Tahrir case from Alushta were extended • OVD-Info • RIMA

At the stage of the judicial investigation, the terms of arrest of the accused in the Hizb ut-Tahrir case from Alushta were extended

On December 22, the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don extended the preventive measure for Ruslan Nagaev, Ruslan Mesutov, Eldar Kantimirov and Lenur Khalilov, defendants in the Alushta case of Hizb ut-Tahrir, until April 15, 2021. This was reported by the Crimean Solidarity movement.

Lawyers for those accused under "terrorist" articles asked the court to change the measure of restraint to one not related to deprivation of liberty. The defender of Ruslan Mesutov argued his petition as follows:

We all know perfectly well that these people did not commit or prepare any terrorist acts. This is not the first case of the same type. <...> The only thing they did was observe Islam as it was understood and tried to convey this to the circle of people with whom they communicated. Arguments about the terrorist nature of the crime are formal.

The case is at the stage of judicial investigation, the defendants are being held in SIZO No. 1 in Rostov-on-Don.

Lenur Khalilov, Ruslan Mesutov, Ruslan Nagaev and Eldar Kantimirov were detained after mass searches in June 2019. Khalilov and Mesutov are accused under the article on organizing the activities of a terrorist organization (part 1 of article 205.5 of the Criminal Code), Nagaev and Kantimirova are accused under the article on participation in the activities of a terrorist organization (part 2 of article 205.5 of the Criminal Code). Also, everyone is charged with preparing for the violent overthrow of power (part 1 of article 278 of the Criminal Code with the note of article 30 of the Criminal Code).
Hizb ut-Tahrir was recognized as a terrorist organization in Russia by a court decision. In different regions of the country, cases of terrorism are opened, while members of the cells of the organization are accused and sentenced to various terms in a strict regime colony only on the basis that they met in apartments, read religious literature and recruited new members.